The calculation divides operating expenses, including depreciation but without provisions, by the sum of the net interest income and non-interest income.
While continuing to reduce its cost/income ratio, Japan remains the major economy with the highest, and therefore most inefficient, ratio at 69.39%, followed by Canada with 66.92% and Germany with 61.49%.
Poland remains the highest among the emerging economies, worsening this year to 74.47%, followed by Israel (68.15%) and Taiwan (62.22%).
The region with the worst ratio is the European Union. It has an improved 57.57% but lags behind Latin America (55.63%) and Asia (52.97%). However, it is still ahead of the single-country rate for the US (59.91%).
The region with the lowest cost/income ratio is the Middle East with 39.31%. It also contains the four countries with the lowest, and therefore most efficient, ratios: Saudi Arabia (31.44%), Bahrain (31.12%), the United Arab Emirates (30.58%) and Kuwait (23.74%).
While most countries showed some improvement, the biggest improver was Singapore, down 8.15% to 40.87%, followed by Argentina, down 6.97% to 59.10%, and China, down 6.45% to 43.48%.COST/INCOME RATIO BY REGIONAVERAGE COST/INCOME RATIO BY REGIO
